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Shazia Saleem London specialises in working with hand woven textiles. It is our aim to actively promote and educate about hand woven and sustainable textiles to make 'hand woven' as widely understood and appreciated as 'organic'. We create designs that transcend trends and disposable fashion, ensuring styles remain contemporary for many seasons. Every piece in our collections contain hand woven fabrics to ensure there is sustained employment for weavers. The hand woven silks and cottons are bought from individual weavers or co-operatives from all over India. Shazia Saleem also designs with British hand woven textiles such as Harris Tweed. The company uses organic Khadi cotton only from registered Khadi shops which specialise in hand woven and other hand-made products. Khadi refers to hand woven cloth using yarn that is hand spun and hand woven. Khadi was used as a politcal tool by Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian National Congress as part of the freedom movement for independence. Peace (or ahimsa) silk is cruelty free silk and is used extensively throughout all our collections. In particular we work with beautiful wild Tussar silk from Orissa. The cocoons are collected from the forest only after the moth has hatched. It is then prepared in rice cookers, without the use of chemicals, to be hand spun and hand woven. Tussar silk is considered auspicious due to its purity. Shazia Saleem London supports the Indian Silk Mark scheme for quality assurance. We pay fair wages and build long term relationships with weavers and non-government organisations (NGOs) throughout our work and supply chain. Shazia Saleem Limited is one of the selected design companies working closely with Tara Projects - a very established Indian fair trade organisation with an international reputation for quality products. Last year Shazia Saleem was appointed official adviser to Tara Projects to ensure a continuing collaborative relationship. Garment tags, folders and business cards are manufactured using hand made Khadi paper by Karm Marg an organisation based in Delhi working to provide accommodation and a caring, loving environment for street and railway children. Shazia Saleem Limited is working towards achieving accreditation from the World Fair Trade Association. Garments are manufactured in a factory, the premises and work conditions are inspected regularly and work conditions conform to those recommended by Fair Trade Forum India and www.labourbehindthelabel.org . We are always interested in working with new NGOs and collaborative projects so please get in touch. Photography by: Kevin Moran - www.kevinmoran.co.uk (SS08, AW08) Neta Yaniv - neta@netayaniv.com (SS09) Friends of Shazia Saleem London include: http://centreforsustainablefashion.wordpress.com/
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